Early Recordings

Medical Records presents a hand-picked selection of the early recordings of Germany’s Bal Paré. The band started as Jeanette & das Land Z in 1981 with a 7“ on Konkurrenz Rec./ Phonogram which included two cover versions (“Raumpatrouille” soundtrack from a weird science fiction TV series and sixties Grand Prix Eurovision number one hit, “Poupe de cire, poupe de son“ by France Gall.). The 7” became an underground hit. Members were Kirsten Klemm (vocals), Jan T. Krahn (Synthesizer) and Matthias Schuster (Synthesizer, Beatbox). The band changed their name to Bal Paré and begin recording independently. In addition, drummer Jürgen Weiss joined the band. The band name was based on the song “Es war beim Bal Pare“ from the German chansonette Hildegard Knef, which was a musical influence beside bands like Kraftwerk, Depeche Mode, Erasure, Yazoo, etc. The first Bal Paré LP “Hamburg-Paris-Catania“ was released in 1982 on Konkurrenz Records. The members performed under witty pseudonyms for that record. Since they had a large fanbase in Sweden, the second release (“Metamorphose”) came out in Stockholm on the Krautrock label. Around this time, a new member, Manfred Asmus , joined on keyboards and programming and Jan T. Krahn and Jürgen Weiss had left the band. There were many tracks produced during this time that ended up unreleased. Much of the material from this selection of tracks were culled from unreleased sessions from the 80s with Manfred Asmus (and subsequently also collected on the “Best of” CD only release in 1996 on Tatra Records. Interestingly there was only one and only gig by Bal Paré in Hamburg with Apoptygma Berzerk and Sabotage Q.C.Q.C. Due to requests since 2000, Matthias Schuster has reformed Bal Paré and has released several new records with much success. The original two LPs are long out of print and demand very high prices on the collectors market. This is the first time this collection has been reissued on vinyl. The opening track “Rien” is a perfect display of what synth pop is modeled after. Rich lead synth textures, male/female interplayed vocals, and electronic percussion. Though the entire record flows with ease and captivates the listener from beginning to end, other standout tracks include “Palais d’Amour”, “Die Idioten”, and “Meilleur Du Monde”. This collection is absolutely crucial for fans of early new wave such as Deux, Moderne, Performance and other similar acts of the genre. The tracks have been lovingly restored by Matthias Schuster. Presented on high-quality 180gram heavyweight red/clear vinyl.